Restoring New England Gardens

22 years ago

Well, we have to get this new Forum off to the right start.

For those in the northeast, the following paragraph is extracted from a speech delivered to MA. Board of Agriculture at its annual meeting by Mr. C.O. Perkins on Dec. 14th, 1864, the minutes of which were published as HORTICULTURE OF MASSACHUSETTES, 1864, by C.L. Flint You may find it helpful as you contemplate garden restoration ideas.

" THE NEW ENGLAND FARMHOUSE

Tastefully kept, carefully designed with reference to convenient location, convenience of internal arrangement, beauty of form and proportion, draped, perhaps, in tasteful simplicity with festoons of living vines, and with surrounding ornaments, of flowers, and of shade and fruit trees; occupied by the intelligent and warm-hearted farmer, with his neat, tasty, frugal, industrious and affectionate housewife, their cares and labors being lessened by the aid of sons bearing the image of the mother, and by daughters in the likeness of the father, and who, through the diligent training of the experienced parents, are the aspiring candidates to like positions,-all these, and even more may be seen in the rural portions of every New England town, and in no place on earth do we find nearer approaches to the Garden of Eden......"

Hopefully these words will inspire you as you go about your restoration projects!

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (8)

John_D
22 years ago
Amazing stuff! I like the "neat, tasty [sic], frugal, industrious and affectionate housewife" in the "Garden of Eden."
Saypoint zone 6 CT
22 years ago
Nandina, that is really lovely. What a vivid picture it conjures up!
Jo
Related Professionals
Baton Rouge Landscape Architects & Landscape Designers · Fayetteville Landscape Architects & Landscape Designers · Norfolk Landscape Architects & Landscape Designers · Fort Dodge Landscape Architects & Landscape Designers · Kankakee Landscape Architects & Landscape Designers · Medford Landscape Architects & Landscape Designers · Fort Smith Landscape Contractors · Wichita Landscape Contractors · Lafayette Landscape Contractors · Lewiston Landscape Contractors · Providence Landscape Contractors · Bend Landscape Contractors · Des Moines Architects & Building Designers · Erie Architects & Building Designers · Tucson Architects & Building Designers
claireplymouth z6b coastal MA
22 years ago
...and the first sentence isn't even over yet!

Claire
cynthia_gw
22 years ago
Claire! :)

Thanks John - I enjoy reading the old gardening books. Interesting to note how spellings have changed. Looking at an old gardening book last night I thought I spotted a typo: "Wistaria." But it was repeated throughout, so "wistaria" it was.
Cady
22 years ago
John,
I'm guessing that "tasty" meant something different back then. For example, "possessing of good taste." :)

Here in Salem, Mass., we have lots of Federal Period homes (late 1700s to early 1800s) with a smattering of 17th-century homes. Many have been lovingly restored, along with gardens, from lithographs and drawings of them that were found in historical writings.

There is also the famous House of the Seven Gables (as depicted in Nathanial Hawthorne's book), with it's 17th-century grounds. For many years, the head gardener there designed and maintained very period-authentic gardens for the house. A few years ago, a new head gardener came aboard and completely re-worked the historical gardens. Some local historians have lauded his efforts, while others disapprove because they say the results are too avant-garde.
I haven't been there to see the work that has caused the bruhaha, so this spring I'll make a point of going over there to see how the gardens were renovated.
AshaK
22 years ago
This sentence paints a picture ... and so of course identifying popular landscape painting styles and philosophies of the area can help in creation of a completely original yet faithful to the spirit of history...
ScottReil_GD
22 years ago
Reminds me of my old corporate days when Lancaster and York Counties (PA) were part of my territory. That's exactly how the Amish farms are...
ginny12
21 years ago
Just roaming thru the archives here and must note that WISTARIA is not a typo. The plant was named for a famous horticulturist named WISTAR. He was part of a renowned Philadelphia family, some of whom spelled the name WISTAR and some who spelled it WISTER. If you look thru older garden books, you will often see WISTARIA. But you know what won...WISTERIA. No typos involved. Now you know the rest of the story.